Game-changing recycling solution has doubled customer numbers, revenue and valuation over the last 12 months to become Australia’s fastest growing recycling co.
Special Report: Over the past five years, Australia’s fastest-growing waste technology company, RecycleSmart, has saved 800 tonnes of material from landfill – and in the past 12 months alone, it has doubled both customer numbers and revenue.
Now, the company is launching an equity crowdfunding campaign, with two times the valuation it had a year ago, to fund its expansion to every capital city in the country by the end of the year.
In the first 48 hours of the campaign going live on leading crowdfunding platform Birchal, 500 expressions of interest were lodged making it the fastest start to a crowdfund on the platform this year.
Uber for waste
Dubbed Australia’s “Uber for waste,” RecycleSmart collects almost everything that can’t be placed in the yellow council bins and recycles or repurposes it—soft plastics, coffee pods, batteries, blister packs, electronics, and clothes. The app allows customers to book pickups, and the platform analyses the collected recyclables and provides valuable data and insights to the customer.
The company is backed by Antler, Brisbane Angels, and Prisma Capital, and co-founder and CEO Giorgio Barrachi says he expects customers to lead the crowdfunding campaign.
The Recyclesmart team are celebrating their successes, with an eye on building an even bigger, more impactful future. Pic: Supplied (Recyclesmart).
“We know the vast majority of Australians want to do more to take ownership of their waste and are frustrated about being forced to send items that could be repurposed or recycled to landfill because of a lack of accessible solutions,” Barrachi said
“We are the only service that provides traceability, transparency, and round-the-clock reporting for a reasonable price,” he continued.
“Through our partners, we can shred soft plastics and convert them into feedstock oil. We donate clothes and textiles in sellable condition to the Australian Red Cross or other charities and repurpose and recycle if they’re not.
“Valuable materials are extracted from e-waste. Polystyrene is granulated and pelletised to be transformed into raw material that can be used to make park benches, skirting boards, and even bee hives. We make sure every item has a second life.”
Mr Barrachi said a lack of government-funded recycling solutions had led many Australians to take waste matters into their own hands.
“We have had a huge surge in customers across Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Byron Bay, Sydney and Melbourne,” he said.
“Our annual recurring revenue has doubled to $2 million, and the number of bags of materials we have collected has increased by 240% yearly.”
RecycleSmart also launched a B2B offering just under a year ago. Since then, nearly 800 companies have registered their interest including Canva, Google, John Holland, Dolby Australia, Disney Studios and WeWork.
“Every year, Australia sends roughly 76 million tonnes of material to landfill, and corporations account for more than 80% of that,” Giorgio said.
“With the clock ticking on the Federal Government’s 2025 National Packaging Targets and Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek pushing for stricter rules to boost recycling, Australian companies are feeling the heat to step up and manage their waste better,” he said.
Big name backers
Canva’s Dan Bloom said the company was searching for an end to end waste stream for some time before finding a perfect match in RecycleSmart.
“RecyleSmart was able to satisfy all our waste needs and collect everything from one spot,” he said.
“The access to data was also crucial for us. It provides invaluable insights and enables us to congratulate our team and make them feel good about the job they’re doing and about being leaders when it comes to corporate Australia taking responsibility for its waste.”
RecycleSmart has also partnered with councils to provide subsidised, regular collections, including some of the country’s biggest, like Sydney’s Randwick City Council.
Operations Coordinator Graham Hope said the council had struggled to find a solution for soft plastics before partnering with RecyleSmart.
“RecycleSmart has been fantastic to partner with,“ he said. “The amount of information we can access through their online service is second to none.”
Birchal co-founder and CEO Matt Vitale said the crowdfunding platform was delighted to be managing the round.
“We’re thrilled to be welcoming RecycleSmart back for round two with Birchal,” he said.
“Their success speaks volumes – 800,000 kgs of waste diverted and impressive traction and growth since their last raise. Recyclesmart is inspiring a movement towards a cleaner Australia; making recycling as easy as ordering a pizza.”
This article was developed in collaboration with RecycleMe, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.
This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.
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